Is This You?

"As a professional, you probably never expected that your "ideal job" would become your worst nightmare. It's hard enough coping with the stressful workload, long hours and lack of appreciation, but now the workplace bully has made your life a living hell and you're at the point of burnout, with nowhere to turn."

Waking up with a sense of dread each day, anticipating but not knowing when, where and how vicious the next attack is going to be leaves you feeling exposed, vulnerable and unprepared.

You can't sleep at night, you toss and turn, analysing where you went wrong and unable to believe that people actually behave like that and get away with it.

You can't concentrate at work and you feel ashamed that your work performance is suffering because you have such high standards; but you just can't do it anymore.

You are not alone. Workplace bullying and workplace mobbing is rife and affects one in three workers, although in reality that number is probably a lot higher. For every case that's reported, 8 to 20 go unreported.

The worse part is that once you have been targeted by the workplace bully or bullies, you are likely to lose your job and perhaps even your career, whereas the bully will likely get away scott-free and maybe even get promoted.

At a gut level, you know it's really bad but fear taking action to stop it because:

You're afraid you'll lose your job

You've got a ton of debt you can't afford

You're worried you'll leave without references and be unable to get another job

Once word gets out, the bully will come after you and the problem will get worse

You'll get a reputation as a trouble-maker

You're right to be concerned. Over the past five years, I have frequently seen:

Good people getting ambushed-fired within days of making a complaint of bullying

Normally high-functioning people brought to the brink of suicide from bullying

Company lies: Claim to have great values but ignore their employees' very real pain

Mediation where targets take half the blame for the bullying since it's a "personality conflict"

Targets lose quality of life, mental health, career, income and on the brink of bankruptcy

Having me on your side takes you to a whole other level in your life. I would love to show you:

How to shift your mindset so that you start thinking strategically instead of emotionally

The predictable "map" of workplace bullying - get to your destination on YOUR terms

How to spot a bully-prone organisation before ever accepting a job in one again

How much bullying costs YOU and your company - so you can make a powerful case to get rid of a bully if you need to

What strategies actually work? Disarm bullies not by beating them at their own game but by shifting to an altogether different, more powerful game

Plus, I also give you insider information on:

What makes bullies tick? Understand what that is to be one step ahead of them

How to make effective use of anti-bullying legislation

The ABSOLUTE WORSE CASE of workplace bullying

Why the victim cops the blame, not the bully or the organisation

Why you specifically got targeted and how it happens to good people

How Does It Work?

The Walk Away From Work Stress Program is an intensive online program run at intervals throughout the year for a small, select group who are motivated to transform and completely bully-proof their life.

There's daily support from me and your close-knit group of peers over eight weeks so you can free yourself from the tyranny of your workplace.

There are homework requirements in the program to help you better understand yourself and your situation so you can reclaim your life and live it on your terms at last.

This program is for you if:

You are sick and tired of being someone else's punching bag

You want the bullying to STOP

You have a burning desire, the necessary courage and resources to claim your life back

You are willing to do the work that it takes to get a good outcome.

This program is NOT for you if:

You have been bullied for so long that you are almost totally emotionally and psychologically incapacited

You are passive and wish that someone else would take care of it for you

You lack the courage, confidence, discipline and resources to do what it takes to get a good outcome

*Please note: If this describes you, you will need to do longer term restorative work with a trusted mental health professional, which is beyond the scope of the current program.

June 5: "Emotional Dumping"

Channel 10 Wake Up

Holidays from work can elicit relief and dread in equal measure when you know you’ll be going back to a co-worker with a personality disorder who seems to take the air right out of the room and drains you dry – in other words an “energy vampire.”

Working with difficult people for too long can lead to burnout, which is a state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged exposure to stress. It saps your energy to the extent that you can lose your interest and motivation on the job and end up feeling increasingly cynical and resentful.Read the whole article here

Workplace mobbing is like "workplace bullying on steroids", a form of psychological terrorism where a group gangs up on an individual who is left reeling with no idea what happened or why. It takes away a person’s safety in the world, social standing, dignity, identity, sense of belonging and can lead to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

At least one in three employees have experienced workplace bullying and for every reported case there are eight to twenty unreported cases. Thirty percent of those cases involve workplace mobbing.

In 2012, the House of Representatives Education and Employment Committee conducted a wide-ranging enquiry into workplace bullying, including prevalence, how workplace cultures respond to bullying and whether there are regulatory, administrative and cross jurisdictionally policy gaps that should be addressed.

At the committee’s Perth hearing, Unions WA told the inquiry that calls about workplace bullying had increased by 70% in the previous three years. Further, employees are not being adequately protected by organisations' anti-bullying policies and procedures.

Ninemsn Health

Be Kind To Yourself To Live Longer - Study: 10/04/2014

Workplace bullying often leads to depression, which is fueled by self-doubt and self-loathing. The antidote to this is self-compassion and Kimberly Gillan explains why in her Ninemsn Health article.

6PR Drivetime Radio Interviews

On January 1 this year in Australia, new anti-bullying legislation was introduced whereby workers can now apply to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for an order to stop workplace bullying. Once an application has been received, the FWC has 14 days in which to respond with an investigation of the complaint. Legislators expected an overwhelming demand given that bullying affects over thirty percent (three million plus) of Australian workers and costs the economy between six and 36 billion dollars per annum.

It seemed reasonable to expect that applications should have numbered in the thousands by now when results from a parliamentary inquiry in 2012-13 showed that workers’ most desired outcome was that they just wanted the bullying to stop.

However, only 44 applications have been received this year so far, six of which were withdrawn. This has surprised commentators who have been speculating about possible causes, especially when in contrast, 1,000 unfair dismissal complaints were made within the same time period. Read the whole article here

Workplace Mobbing In Dutch: 04/2014

About Dr Sophie Henshaw

As a Clinical Psychologist and workplace bullying expert, Dr Sophie Henshaw understands people with personality disorders and how they function in workplace relationships. She can share with you how to deal with a workplace bullies and energy vampires.

Dr Sophie has experienced bullying in the workplace both personally and professionally. As a new psychologist starting out in a government organisation that had “a zero tolerance to bullying”, she was the target of a serial workplace bully who was never held to account. Professionally, Dr Sophie has treated many clients suffering severe and chronic symptoms of depression and traumatic stress as a result of being bullied at work. She has also conducted numerous interventions in workplaces with organisational cultures vulnerable to workplace bullies.

Dr Sophie graduated from Murdoch University in Perth, WA in 2000. She initially worked in a variety of settings including maximum-security prisons, private hospitals and with GPs before going onto full-time private practice in 2005.

3 Massive Mistakes That Even Smart Career Professionals Make That Keep Them Stressed, Depressed And Dreading Mondays

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Case Studies

Jacinta Got Two Massive Payouts And Is Now In A Job She Loves

Jacinta, a popular and capable team-focused project manager was relegated to workplace Siberia when her old-fashioned boss, who had poor people skills, blamed her when the company didn’t deliver specific outcomes to the client. Made to sit in a corner and read magazines all day, her self-esteem suffered and she was frequently teary at work. Adding to the humiliation, she was called to a meeting of four senior management and HR staff against just her. Luckily, as her workplace ally and mouthpiece I took control of the meeting to keep her safe from emotional distress and we negotiated a large redundancy payout plus a worker’s comp claim. Unfortunately she was scapegoated again in her next job, but this time we saw it coming and were able to plan well ahead of time. Now more resilient, she negotiated another great payout. She since moved away from that industry into a better job with fairer management.

Kris Got Targeted By A Bully And Lost His Job Faster Than He Could Think

Kris, a competent and likeable workplace trainer was targeted by a new manager who took an instant dislike to him. He had a gut feeling something was wrong, but couldn’t put his finger on it. He got so stressed at work that he lost sleep, his hair fell out and he felt constantly on edge. Before he had time to prepare a defence, she called a meeting led by an HR manager to confront him with a fabricated grievance. Within days, he lost his much-loved job without any verbal or written warnings. Working as his advocate, I accompanied him to the meeting and compiled psychological evidence showing post-traumatic stress disorder from bullying. We are now taking back control to shift the outcome from victim to victor. With the help of a great lawyer, Kris applied for a worker’s comp and unfair dismissal claim for over $100K that he has every chance of winning.